The Scrapyard Rope League is a 4 week pseudo-competition that rewards group achievement and teamwork rather than individual climbing grades. Wednesdays April 16th, 23rd, 30th, May 7th from 6pm-9pm, teams of 4 climbers pick up their score cards and hop on the week’s newest routes. Teams will be scored and compete against one another for 4 weeks and winners will be announced at the end of the 4th session. So, assemble your climbing cohort and bring your best effort and enthusiasm, because Rope League is about climbing and community! Enjoy some friendly competition and try for top spots, prizes, and the envy of rock enthusiasts near and far. Don’t have a crew? Not to worry! We’ll help you meet new folks by connecting you with existing teams in need of more folks. Stop by the front desk to sign up and let us know that you’d like to be added to a team. FREE for members; $40 per person for non-members (fee does not include day pass or rentals).
You don’t have to be able to belay to participate (but it would be a great reason to learn)!
Teams
- 4 participants per team
- Co-ed league, no gender specific categories
- Teams should contain climbers with mixed experience
Setting a Target Grade
Each week you’ll be scored on the top 3 climbs you send. You get points for each climb based on your target grade.
Each climber declares their Target Grade the first week. We encourage you to set an aspirational goal. This should be the highest rated climb that you typically send on a day of climbing at the gym. Keep in mind that your target grade should be difficult for you, but doable! If you plan to climb all of your routes on lead, then your target grade should reflect this. We are NOT giving a bonus for climbing on lead.
As you enter the routes on your scoresheet we’ll give you the score you receive for each climb based on that target grade. If you climb a route at your target grade you get 100 points. Each grade above or below your target grade changes your score by 10 points. For example, if my target grade is 5.11+ and I climb a 5.11- I’ll get 90 points for that climb. But if I climb a 5.12+ (which is 2 +/- grades above 5.11) I get 120 points.
We’re approaching Target Grades this league in a slightly new way. Rather than bumping a climber’s target grade each week based on how they performed that week – at the end of the league, we’ll evaluate what grades you actually climbed throughout the league and determine what your real target grade should have been and recalculate all of your scores based on that new target grade. We’ll basically throw out your outlying highest and lowest grades and set the target grade one or two +/- grades above middle grades you climbed.
We hope that this is a better system to:
- avoid people trying to game the system and maximize points each week to avoid getting bumped
- help new climbers (or climbers new to the gym) who don’t have a good sense of how they should set their target grade.
Format
- The league will consist of 4 weeks of climbing in which team points are accumulated.
- Competitors will log every eligible climb they complete each week. Points will be awarded and totaled for the top 3 hardest climbs completed.
- The weekly team score will be the cumulative score of all of its members. If a member is absent, their average score is used with a 5% reduction. An additional 5% reduction is added for each consecutive week of absence.
- The 1st position team at the end of the season will be crowned the Rope League Champions.
Routes, Rating, Refreshing
- Each week, the route setters will set a total of 6-8 routes
- Climbs will be available for 2-weeks but maximum point values will only be awarded the first week. Details on points can be found in the next section.
- Eligible league climbs will span 5.7 to 5.13+ and be marked with a special tag.
Scoring Points
- Typical competition rules apply
- Climbers will gain points by completing a route without falling (redpoint format). Completion is achieved by showing control on the finish hold or top of the wall as designated.
- Static starts only. i.e. hands cannot leave the start hold until rest of body is off the ground but must establish control on the start hold with the entire body off the ground (no hopping).
- Volumes & aretes are allowed unless specifically indicated as “OFF” at the start hold.
The Chart below will be used to establish points based on each climber’s target grade (bold row below).
| Points | 5.7 | 5.8 | 5.9 | 5.10- | 5.10+ | 5.11- | 5.11+ | 5.12- | 5.12+ | 5.13- | 5.13+ |
| 1 | 5.5 | 5.6 | 5.7 | 5.8 | 5.9 | 5.10- | 5.10+ | 5.11- | |||
| 1 | 5.5 | 5.6 | 5.7 | 5.8 | 5.9 | 5.10- | 5.10+ | 5.11- | 5.11+ | ||
| 70 | 5.5 | 5.6 | 5.7 | 5.8 | 5.9 | 5.10- | 5.10+ | 5.11- | 5.11+ | 5.12- | |
| 80 | 5.5 | 5.6 | 5.7 | 5.8 | 5.9 | 5.10- | 5.10+ | 5.11- | 5.11+ | 5.12- | 5.12+ |
| 90 | 5.6 | 5.7 | 5.8 | 5.9 | 5.10- | 5.10+ | 5.11- | 5.11+ | 5.12- | 5.12+ | 5.13- |
| 100 | 5.7 | 5.8 | 5.9 | 5.10- | 5.10+ | 5.11- | 5.11+ | 5.12- | 5.12+ | 5.13- | 5.13+ |
| 110 | 5.8 | 5.9 | 5.10- | 5.10+ | 5.11- | 5.11+ | 5.12- | 5.12+ | 5.13- | 5.13+ | |
| 120 | 5.9 | 5.10- | 5.10+ | 5.11- | 5.11+ | 5.12- | 5.12+ | 5.13- | 5.13+ | ||
| 130 | 5.10- | 5.10+ | 5.11- | 5.11+ | 5.12- | 5.12+ | 5.13- | 5.13+ | |||
| 140 | 5.10+ | 5.11- | 5.11+ | 5.12- | 5.12+ | 5.13- | 5.13+ |
- Routes cannot be reclimbed and resubmitted for points after they have been awarded points in a prior week’s league night.
- A flash bonus of 5 points is in effect. If you complete a climb on the first attempt, you get an extra 5 points.
- No deductions for falls. Try as many times as desired without penalty.
- After the first week, eligible routes may be re-climbed for a 3-point deduction off the full value.
- All week-old climbs receive the deduction, whether a competitor completed them previously or not.
- A flash bonus may still apply. For example, if you don’t attempt a route one week because it looks too hard or were out of town but try it and flash it in its second week, the total points awarded will be: Regular value – 3 pts for being old + 5 pts flash bonus. Total points = Full Points +2
- Climbs may only be attempted for points during the designated league time.
- At the end of each climbing session, competitors will submit a small paper log to the gym staff. It will include the following information.
- Climber Name, Team Name, Route #s completed and Flashed or not
- The gym staff will manage a digital score sheet which will be submitted to League officials on a weekly basis.
